2019/10/30 Council Agenda Packet

4, EVERETTMEMORANDUM WASHINGTON TO: Lyle Ryan, Chief of Staff FROM: AC Llewellyn DATE: 10/15/2019 RE: NW Ambulance Contract Amendment Proposal - Background On July 1st,2016,the City of Everett entered into a Basic Life Support(BLS) Ambulance Services contract with Platinum Nine Holdings, LLC(doing business as NW Ambulance)to provide BLS ambulance transport services throughout the City. Prior to theimplementation of this contract, BLS transport needs in Everett had been met by three competing ambulance providers (Faulk, American Medical Response, and Rural Metro)who were requested on an as- needed, rotating basis. Because there was not a contractual relationship with the City that guaranteed BLS transports,these companies focused on completing interfacility transfers(i.e. hospital to hospital)to generate revenue. A frequent result of this dynamic was the lack of available ambulances in the City when Everett Fire Department personnel called for a BLS transport. One of the primary purposes of the contract with NW Ambulance was to provide a level of stability with respect to the availability and timely arrival of BLS transport units.With some specific exemptions,the contract requires that NW Ambulance will arrive at ninety percent of all emergent (lights and sirens) requests in less than ten minutes and ninety percent of all non-emergent(no lights or sirens) requests in less than fifteen minutes. In order to meet these requirements, NW Ambulance staffs BLS ambulances at strategic locations within Everett. Response metrics are tracked and reported to Everett Fire on a monthly basis to ensure contract compliance. Since the contract with NW Ambulance was signed in 2016, Everett Fire's IEVERETT staffing deployment has shifted to place more emphasis on providing BLS transport both as a service to our citizens and as a source of revenue.The impact of this shift became especially apparent after April 25th, 2018 when the current collective bargaining agreement(CBA)with IAFF Local 46 went into effect.This iteration of the CBA discontinued (3 person) staffing of Fire Engine 3 2930 Wetmore Ave.,Ste.7 A and implemented daily(2 person)staffing of Aid 1, which is a BLS transport unit lip Everett,WA 98201 located at Station 1. 425.257.8100 In the year prior to Aid 1 being staffed on a daily basis (4/25/17—4/24/18), 425.257.8139 fax Everett Fire completed a combined total of 1,052 BLS transports. In the year fire@everettwa.gov following implementation of the new deployment model (4/25/18—4/24/19), everettwa.gov/fire Everett Fire completed a total of 2,133 BLS transports,which was a year-over- 1 8 ear-over-18